Businesses across the Baltics are looking for real estate financing options that move as fast as the market does. New development projects are launching across Tallinn, Riga, and Vilnius and both local and international capital is flowing into the region. For businesses looking to develop, acquire, or refinance property, this creates real opportunity alongside a practical question: which financing route is right for your project?
Banks remain an option, but they are no longer the only one. Businesses in Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania today can choose between bank loans, investment platforms, and public bond markets. Each route has different criteria, timelines, and costs. This guide maps out all of them, so you can match the right type of financing to your situation.
The main financing options for businesses in the Baltics
1. Bank loans
The major banks operating across the Baltic states — SEB, Swedbank, Luminor, and Citadele, alongside country-specific lenders — offer commercial real estate loans for property purchase, development, and refinancing. Bank financing is typically the most cost-effective option for borrowers who qualify, as banks access capital at lower costs and can pass some of that advantage on through rates.
In practice, banks prefer borrowers with strong, established financials and collateral that is already built and generating income. A completed, tenanted commercial property is far easier to finance through a bank than a development project mid-construction or a plot of land waiting for permits. Approval processes are thorough and can take several months.
The rate a business can access depends on collateral quality, borrower profile, and prevailing market conditions. There is no single market rate, the range is wide, and the outcome of any individual application is difficult to predict in advance. For straightforward, long-term financing where timeline flexibility exists and the collateral is clean, a bank loan is often the right starting point.
2. Real estate investment platforms
Platforms like Estateguru connect property developers and business owners directly with investors who fund loans against real estate. Loans are secured by a mortgage (typically at up to 75% LTV) and the process from application to funding can be completed in days rather than months.
This route works well for a specific type of borrower: one who has a solid project and clear exit strategy, but needs to move faster than a bank allows, is working with development-stage collateral rather than a finished asset, or is looking for financing that can be structured in stages aligned with construction milestones.
It also suits businesses where the financing need does not fit neatly into bank criteria. For example, a first-time developer with a well-secured project, a company refinancing between a construction loan and a long-term bank mortgage, or a business owner using existing property as collateral for operational capital.
For businesses that need an alternative to traditional bank financing, real estate investment platforms offer a regulated and increasingly mainstream route. Estateguru is the largest such platform operating across all three Baltic states. Since receiving its pan-European crowdfunding licence in early 2023, over €271 million has been invested through the platform, the majority in Baltic projects across Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. Estateguru holds an EU-regulated licence as a crowdfunding service provider — meaning clear, standardised processes and investor protections that give confidence on both sides of the transaction.
A closer look at how Estateguru’s loan products work in practice is covered in the section below.
3. Corporate bonds
For larger, more established developers, issuing bonds directly to investors has become an increasingly viable route. Rather than borrowing from a single lender, the developer raises capital from many investors through a structured bond programme, typically secured by a mortgage on the project assets and listed on an exchange or offered through a regulated platform.
The advantage is flexibility: capital can be raised in tranches as the project progresses, and the developer builds a public investor base in the process. The trade-off is complexity. Bond issuances require regulatory compliance, investor relations capacity, and a project profile strong enough to attract public interest. This makes the bond route most suitable for established developers with significant projects and the resources to manage a public offering.
Example: Invego, Baltics (2025–2026)
One of the clearest recent examples in the region is Invego, a real estate developer with over 10 years of operating history and more than 30 active development projects across Estonia, Latvia, and Portugal. In Latvia, Invego is currently developing several large residential projects in and around Riga, including Nordale, Tornakalna Terases, Vitolu Parks, and Mārupes Sirds.
To finance this growth, Invego has completed two consecutive public bond issuances. The scale of investor demand in both rounds illustrates what the bond route can deliver for a developer with an established track record. For most SMEs, however, bonds are not the practical starting point — they are a tool for developers who have already built market credibility and can support the compliance and investor relations requirements of a public offering.
Which real estate financing option is right for your business?
| Situation | Best fit |
| Finished collateral, strong financials, long-term hold | Bank loan |
| Development-stage project, time-sensitive deal, staged financing | Investment platform |
| Short-term bridge before refinancing or sale | Bridge loan via platform |
| Business expansion using existing property as collateral | Business loan via platform |
| Large-scale project, established developer, public profile | Corporate bonds |
How property-backed business loans work with Estateguru
Estateguru offers three loan types for businesses, all secured by real estate:
Development loan — for new construction, renovation, or infrastructure development. Covers residential and commercial projects alike. Loan amounts from €20,000 to €5,000,000, terms up to three years, LTV up to 75%. Stage financing is available for multi-phase projects, where the loan is structured in rounds aligned with rising collateral value as construction progresses.
Bridge loan — short-term financing for property acquisition, or to bridge the gap before permanent financing is arranged. Most suitable when speed matters and the exit strategy (sale, refinancing, or long-term bank mortgage) is clearly defined.
Business loan — for businesses using existing real estate as collateral to raise capital for operations, expansion, or equipment. Not limited to property developers. Read more about how a property-backed business loan works: Property-backed loan for businesses: secured financing that moves faster than a bank.
The process is straightforward: submit an inquiry online, and a loan manager will respond within one to two business days. Once all documentation is in place (collateral appraisal, project description, business plan) the application goes to credit committee. After approval, the loan is funded by investors on the platform. There are no penalties for early repayment.
Case studies
Juglasciems, Riga, Latvia
Juglasciems is a gated residential community on the banks of the Jugla River and Jugla Lake, 14 kilometres from Riga’s city centre. The developer, SIA Namu Būvaģentūra, needed financing to build roads and utility connections for new land plots — transforming raw land into market-ready parcels. Bank financing for infrastructure-stage land development is difficult to arrange; the collateral is unserviced land, not a completed asset. Estateguru provided a development loan secured by a first-rank mortgage on the land. The loan was repaid in full from plot sales.
Vagabondi Lofts, Pärnu, Estonia
The 150-year-old red-brick warehouse known as Beti ait, located in Pärnu’s Üleljõe district, had stood largely dormant for decades. The developer, Miston Capital, set out to convert the historic building into 44 luxury loft units — one of the first large-scale loft-style residential projects in Pärnu. Raising €4.4 million through conventional channels for a heritage conversion project presented challenges: the collateral was a pre-renovation historic building, and the timeline was tight. Estateguru funded the project through a development loan, with capital contributed by nearly 10,000 investors from 75 countries. The project was completed successfully and the loan repaid in full.
Choosing the right financing for your project
The right route depends on how quickly you need the capital, what your collateral looks like right now, and how much process your business can support.
Banks are the right long-term partner when the collateral is clean, the timeline is flexible, and the financials are strong. For projects that are moving fast, involve development-stage assets, or fall outside standard bank criteria, an investment platform like Estateguru offers a practical and regulated alternative — one with a demonstrated track record across all three Baltic markets.
If you’re ready to explore a property-backed loan for your next project, Estateguru’s team can provide a quote within two business days.
